Newsletter 2018-05-18

FEATURED

How an island of mice is changing what we know about evolution by Morgan Erickson-Davis [05/17/2018]

– Researchers have identified the smallest-known island where multiple species of mammals evolved from a single founding species. The Philippine island of Mindoro is the size of Yellowstone National Park and host to four species of earthworm mice.
– Genetic analysis indicates all members from these four species descended from just a few individuals that rafted to Mindoro from a neighboring island millions of years ago.
– Three of the species are endemic to Mindoro, and the researchers believe they evolved on different mountains. The study’s findings highlight the pivotal role mountains can play in speciation, and provide evidence that evolution can occur even in small areas.
– The researchers say this underlines the importance of protected areas not just for species preservation, but for species emergence as well. The apparent success of such a small founding population may also give hope for species currently hovering on the precipice of extinction.


Brazilian Amazon oil palm deforestation under control, for now by Sue Branford and Maurício Torres [05/17/2018]

– Brazil’s Sustainable Palm Oil Production Program (SPOPP), launched in 2010, aims to prevent primary and secondary forest clearing for new oil palm plantations in Legal Amazonia. As part of the plan, a bio-physical suitability zoning map excluded legally protected parks, indigenous reserves and intact forest areas from those areas available for oil palm cultivation.
– With 31.2 million hectares (120,463 square miles) of degraded land existing in Legal Amazonia that could be put into oil palm production without severe ecological consequences, it was thought at the time that there would be no need for deforestation by the industry. A recent study gauges SPOPP’s success from 2006 to 2014.
– The study surveyed oil palm cultivation over a 50,000 square kilometer area in Pará state, finding that 90 percent of production expansion over that time occurred on former pasture, not forest. In fact, direct conversion of intact forest to oil palm declined 4 percent from 2006-2010, to less than 1 percent from 2010-2014 in the study area.
– Researchers fear that major deforestation due to an oil palm production boom could occur in the near future if transportation infrastructure is markedly improved, and if Brazil’s economy, political and institutional stability increases. The study didn’t address escalating conflicts between Amazon oil palm plantations and traditional communities.


Attack of the turtles: ruralists assault environmental laws, Amazon by Sue Branford and Maurício Torres [05/15/2018]

– With the Brazilian public focused on the October elections, and many members of congress gone home to organize runs for office, the bancada ruralista, rural lobby, has launched a raft of amendments, attached to unrelated bills, that would undo many of Brazil’s environmental and indigenous protections. There is a strong chance of passage.
– These stealth measures are known as “jabutis” or “turtles.” Two jabutis, attached to an energy bill, could lead to the privatization of Brazil’s electricity sector, and to allowing the ownership of land by foreigners, currently forbidden in Brazil, for the purpose of building dams, transmission lines, and other energy facilities. Passage could greatly benefit China.
– Another rider, attached to a bill giving emergency humanitarian assistance to Venezuelan refugees, would abolish a legal requirement to consult with indigenous communities about new energy projects to be built beside roads and railways that already cross their lands. The rider would immediately impact the Waimiri-Atroari Indians in Roraima state.
– Another jabuti would benefit Cerrado agribusiness by classifying all proposed irrigation projects as “projects of public interest,” making them easier to approve, with less rigorous environmental impact studies. Another jabuti would simplify the environmental licensing process for small hydroelectric dams, potentially harming both the Amazon and Pantanal.


Scientists find ‘ground zero’ of deadly frog pandemic by Morgan Erickson-Davis [05/11/2018]

– First observed by scientists in the 1970s, the chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) had spread around the world by the early 2000s. The fungus kills frogs by colonizing their skin and impairing their ability to absorb water and electrolytes.
– By 2007, Bd infection had led to the decline or extinction of around 200 species of frogs, and today is considered one of the biggest single threats to amphibians worldwide.
– For a new study, researchers genetically analyzed hundreds of Bd samples; their results suggest that the fungus is from the Korean peninsula and began spreading between 50-120 years ago with the expansion of international trade.
– The researchers say the pet trade needs much stronger regulations if the spread of Bd – as well as the emerging salamander-killing fungus B. salamandrivorans – is to be stopped before it causes more devastation.


NEWS

TV host Ellen DeGeneres to visit Rwanda in mountain gorilla conservation effort by Basten Gokkon [05/18/2018]

– Talk show host Ellen DeGeneres earlier this year established a fund that will finance the building of a campus in Rwanda to support conservation and protection efforts for the critically endangered mountain gorilla.
– The campus is being built in collaboration with the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, and DeGeneres is scheduled to visit the site in the Virunga Mountains next week.
– The initiative has been welcomed by conservationists and Rwandan government officials, and has received financial support and endorsements from prominent figures in Hollywood.


Kenyan reserve’s tourism monitoring app builds revenue and transparency by Sue Palminteri [05/18/2018]

– Wardens at the Kenya’s Mara Conservancy solved a revenue loss problem by teaming up with their revenue management company to create a smartphone app that lets them check tourists’ ticket and payment status by entering the vehicle license plate numbers.
– Obtaining up-to-date information about the tourists and the validity of their ticket from their patrol car saves the rangers time and avoids their having to interrupt a group’s safari.
– The rangers address any discrepancies first with the tour guide and involve tourists only as a last resort, which has nearly eliminated cheating and enabled the Reserve to boost the revenue it retains.


How an island of mice is changing what we know about evolution by Morgan Erickson-Davis [05/17/2018]

– Researchers have identified the smallest-known island where multiple species of mammals evolved from a single founding species. The Philippine island of Mindoro is the size of Yellowstone National Park and host to four species of earthworm mice.
– Genetic analysis indicates all members from these four species descended from just a few individuals that rafted to Mindoro from a neighboring island millions of years ago.
– Three of the species are endemic to Mindoro, and the researchers believe they evolved on different mountains. The study’s findings highlight the pivotal role mountains can play in speciation, and provide evidence that evolution can occur even in small areas.
– The researchers say this underlines the importance of protected areas not just for species preservation, but for species emergence as well. The apparent success of such a small founding population may also give hope for species currently hovering on the precipice of extinction.


Humans are leaving their mark on the world’s protected areas, study finds by John C. Cannon [05/17/2018]

– About one-third of the world’s total protected area — around 6 million square kilometers (2.3 million square miles) — bears the scars of substantial degradation at the hands of humans, according to research published in the journal Science.
– The researchers found that large parks and reserves held to the toughest standards are doing significantly better than those with laxer controls.
– The authors argue that assessments of the effectiveness of protected areas should be considered, especially as governments try to meet one of the Aichi Biodiversity Targets calling for protecting 17 percent of the Earth’s land area by 2020.


Brazilian Amazon oil palm deforestation under control, for now by Sue Branford and Maurício Torres [05/17/2018]

– Brazil’s Sustainable Palm Oil Production Program (SPOPP), launched in 2010, aims to prevent primary and secondary forest clearing for new oil palm plantations in Legal Amazonia. As part of the plan, a bio-physical suitability zoning map excluded legally protected parks, indigenous reserves and intact forest areas from those areas available for oil palm cultivation.
– With 31.2 million hectares (120,463 square miles) of degraded land existing in Legal Amazonia that could be put into oil palm production without severe ecological consequences, it was thought at the time that there would be no need for deforestation by the industry. A recent study gauges SPOPP’s success from 2006 to 2014.
– The study surveyed oil palm cultivation over a 50,000 square kilometer area in Pará state, finding that 90 percent of production expansion over that time occurred on former pasture, not forest. In fact, direct conversion of intact forest to oil palm declined 4 percent from 2006-2010, to less than 1 percent from 2010-2014 in the study area.
– Researchers fear that major deforestation due to an oil palm production boom could occur in the near future if transportation infrastructure is markedly improved, and if Brazil’s economy, political and institutional stability increases. The study didn’t address escalating conflicts between Amazon oil palm plantations and traditional communities.


Natural gas project that promised economic boom leaves PNG in ‘worse state’: report by Isabel Esterman [05/17/2018]

– Proponents of PNG LNP, an ExxonMobil-led natural gas project in Papua New Guinea, predicted it would bring massive economic benefits to landowners and to the country as a whole.
– According to two recent reports by the Jubilee Australia Research Centre, PNG’s economy is worse off than it would have been without the project.
– Jubilee Australia also links the PNG LNG project to an upswing of violence in the areas around the plant.


Will China’s new ban on the ivory trade help or hurt? (Commentary) by Karl Ammann [05/16/2018]

– At the end of 2017, China announced that it had closed down the domestic legal trade in ivory, to global acclaim.
– The new ban represents all the makings of excellent global public relations, but conservationist Karl Amman asks whether it will do more harm than good for elephants without effective enforcement.
– The post is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily Mongabay.


Greenpeace disowns paper giant over deforestation allegations by Hans Nicholas Jong [05/16/2018]

– Environmental NGO Greenpeace will end its engagement with the Indonesian conglomerate Sinar Mas Group and its pulp and paper arm, Asia Pulp & Paper (APP).
– A new mapping analysis by the NGO showed 80 square kilometers of forests and peatlands has been cleared since 2013 in two concessions that are linked to the paper giant.
– Greenpeace said this finding put APP’s commitment to end deforestation in jeopardy.


‘Rainbow’ chameleon among three new species described from Madagascar by Shreya Dasgupta [05/16/2018]

– Researchers discovered the brilliantly colored rainbow chameleon, now named Calumma uetzi, during an expedition to the remote Sorata massif in northern Madagascar in 2012.
– Over surveys between 2015 and 2016, the researchers found another new species of chameleon, now dubbed Calumma juliae, in a 15-square-kilometer patch of forest. The researchers were unable to find any males of this species.
– They also found only a single male specimen of the third new chameleon species, Calumma lefona, spotted in Andrevorevo in northern Madagascar.


The destruction of nature in S. Sumatra has given rise to a criminal generation (commentary) by Taufik Wijaya [05/16/2018]

– Reports of criminal activity have increasingly trickled out of Indonesia’s South Sumatra province.
– Could these incidents of violence, lawbreaking and general lack of respect for order be related to diminishing natural resources and destruction of the landscape? This article explores this idea.
– This post is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author alone.


Study links malaria to deforestation in the Amazon by Morgan Erickson-Davis [05/15/2018]

– A study published recently adds evidence to the argument that deforestation aids the spread of malaria.
– Researchers compared deforestation patterns to malaria rates in nine states in the Brazilian Amazon. They found that places with the highest incidences of malaria were impacted forest patches between 0.1 and 5 square kilometers in size.
– The researchers write that these forest patches contain the shaded, watery, forest-edge habitat preferred by the mosquitos that transmit malaria.
– To keep malaria from becoming an even bigger threat, the authors call for better monitoring of mosquito populations, land planning, and income generation schemes for forest-dwelling communities.


Attack of the turtles: ruralists assault environmental laws, Amazon by Sue Branford and Maurício Torres [05/15/2018]

– With the Brazilian public focused on the October elections, and many members of congress gone home to organize runs for office, the bancada ruralista, rural lobby, has launched a raft of amendments, attached to unrelated bills, that would undo many of Brazil’s environmental and indigenous protections. There is a strong chance of passage.
– These stealth measures are known as “jabutis” or “turtles.” Two jabutis, attached to an energy bill, could lead to the privatization of Brazil’s electricity sector, and to allowing the ownership of land by foreigners, currently forbidden in Brazil, for the purpose of building dams, transmission lines, and other energy facilities. Passage could greatly benefit China.
– Another rider, attached to a bill giving emergency humanitarian assistance to Venezuelan refugees, would abolish a legal requirement to consult with indigenous communities about new energy projects to be built beside roads and railways that already cross their lands. The rider would immediately impact the Waimiri-Atroari Indians in Roraima state.
– Another jabuti would benefit Cerrado agribusiness by classifying all proposed irrigation projects as “projects of public interest,” making them easier to approve, with less rigorous environmental impact studies. Another jabuti would simplify the environmental licensing process for small hydroelectric dams, potentially harming both the Amazon and Pantanal.


Sifaka lemurs listed as “critically endangered” amid mysterious die-off by Edward Carver [05/15/2018]

– In the last month and a half, at least 31 Verreaux’s sifakas (Propithecus verreauxi) have died in Berenty Reserve near Madagascar’s southern tip.
– It’s one of the largest lemur die-offs scientists can remember.
– Experts believe that a parasite or tick-borne disease is likely to blame, but the exact cause remains unknown.
– At a large IUCN meeting held last week in Antananarivo, Madagascar’s capital, primate specialists decided to uplist all nine sifaka species from endangered to critically endangered.


Typo derails landmark ruling against Indonesian palm oil firm guilty of burning peatland by Hans Nicholas Jong [05/15/2018]

– A district court in Indonesia has shielded an oil palm company from a Supreme Court ruling ordering it to pay $26.5 million in fines for burning peatlands in a high-biodiversity area, citing a typo in the original prosecution.
– The verdict has stunned activists, who had hoped that the original guilty verdict would set a strong precedent for the judicial fight against environmental crimes.
– The government is appealing the latest ruling, which, ironically, is fraught with typos that — under the same legal logic — would render it just as invalid as the original guilty verdict.


Audio: Sylvia Earle on why we must act now to save the oceans by Mike Gaworecki [05/15/2018]

– On today’s episode, renowned marine biologist Sylvia Earle joins us for an in-depth conversation about marine conservation.
– Legendary oceanographer, marine biologist, and environmentalist Sylvia Earle, sometimes known as “Her Deepness” or “The Sturgeon General,” is a National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence and former chief scientist at the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). A documentary film about her work called Mission Blue won a 2015 News & Documentary Emmy.
– She joins us today to discuss how effective marine protected areas are at conserving the oceans and their inhabitants, her Hope Spots program that is identifying some of the most valuable marine environments on the planet, and the latest advances in marine conservation that she is most hopeful about.


Higher incomes, not higher carbon dioxide levels, drive forest gains, study finds by Mongabay.com [05/15/2018]

– New research indicates that higher levels of economic development, rather than carbon dioxide, are responsible for some countries’ gains in forest cover.
– The findings contradict several climate change models that point to the role that higher concentrations of CO2 in the atmosphere can play as a “fertilizer” for plants.
– Policy decisions should account for the role that development plays in the health of forests, the authors say.


Damming the Amazon unfettered after Brazilian purge (commentary) by Philip Fearnside [05/14/2018]

– In January 2018, two key Brazilian officials, Paulo Pedrosa, executive secretary of the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME), and Luiz Augusto Barroso, the head of Energy Research Enterprise, an MME agency responsible for energy planning, announced a shift away from destructive Amazon mega-dam construction.
– They said the reason for the shift was the heavy environmental and social impacts of such dams.
– After the appointment of Moreira Franco, the new Minister of Mines and Energy, both MME officials were replaced. Franco is under investigation in the lava jato (car wash) corruption probe. Amazon dams are particularly prone to corruption.
– There has been no mention since January that any planned Amazonian dams listed for construction by 2026 will be cancelled. This post is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily Mongabay.


Scientists highlight 9 potentially new reef fish species off West Papua by Wahyu Chandra [05/14/2018]

– Scientists in Indonesia may have discovered nine new reef fish species in the waters off West Papua province.
– The discovery highlights the importance of protecting the region’s marine ecosystem for its vast and rich biodiversity.
– However, the researchers also found indications of blast fishing in the protected areas, and have called for sustainable management of the ecosystem.


Indonesia enlists plantation companies to ensure haze-free Asian Games by Hans Nicholas Jong [05/14/2018]

– Organizers of the Asian Games in August are wary of the major sporting event being hit by haze from brush and peat fires, an annual occurrence in Sumatra, where one of the host cities is located.
– The government has called on pulpwood and oil palm companies with concessions in fire-prone areas to take steps to restore degraded peatlands and prevent fires during this year’s dry season, which runs from June through September.
– The companies are legally obliged to restore areas of deep peat, and some are fast-tracking their other fire-prevention programs in light of the Asian Games.


Longest recorded whale shark migration eclipses 20,000 kilometers by Mongabay.com [05/14/2018]

– Scientists followed the movements of a whale shark for nearly two and a half years as she swam more than 20,000 kilometers (over 12,000 miles) from the coast of Central America to the Marianas Trench near Asia.
– Whale sharks, whose numbers have dropped by more than half in the past 75 years according to the IUCN, are taken by fishing boats for their fins, cartilage, meat and teeth, and studies have shown that boats bringing tourists to swim with the largest fish in the ocean change the species’ behavior.
– Given these threats, scientists hope studies such as this one will help guide conservation policy aimed at protecting these animals throughout their migrations.


Climate change could be intensifying dust storms in India, experts say by Mayank Aggarwal [05/14/2018]

– In the past couple of weeks, severe dust storms, thunderstorms and lightning have hit several parts of India, resulting in the deaths of more than 150 people and injuries to at least 300 others.
– With the rise in global temperatures, the intensity of dust and thunderstorms is expected to increase in the future, experts say.
– But even though dust storms and thunderstorms are a common feature in India, there has been no focused work on studying the trends related to it.


Report unmasks indiscriminate killer of elephants: poaching not for ivory, but for skin by Basten Gokkon [05/14/2018]

– Myanmar has seen an increase in the number of elephants killed over the past several years, with some of the carcasses found skinned.
– A report by the U.K.-based conservation group Elephant Family has identified growing demand for elephant skin products from Myanmar’s giant neighbor, China, which it blames for driving elephant poaching in the Southeast Asian country.
– Conservationists are calling on the Myanmar government to boost law enforcement, beef up forest patrols, and increase conservation outreach and awareness on elephants in the country.
– Warning: Some images may be disturbing or graphic.


Report blames coal-fired plant in Bali for pollution, loss of livelihoods by Basten Gokkon [05/14/2018]

– A coal-fired power plant in Celukan Bawang village in Bali, Indonesia, was completed in 2015 to provide up to two-fifth of the resort island’s electricity and help jump-start the local economy.
– An investigation by advocacy group Greenpeace has since revealed persistent opposition to the project by residents, who have voiced concerns over health and environmental issues, as well as land compensation.
– In its report, Greenpeace calls on the district, provincial and national governments to regularly monitor the changes in the area and focus on development based on renewable energy sources.
– The district environmental agency says its own tests show that air and water quality in the area remain within safe limits. It says it has required the plant operator to submit an environmental report every six months.


Vibrations from elephant calls and movements reflect distinct behaviors, study says by Sue Palminteri [05/11/2018]

– Elephants create inaudible seismic waves when they move or “rumble” that complement the audible sound we hear and that researchers can detect using geophones placed in the ground.
– In a new study, elephants walking or calling through low-frequency rumbles created distinct seismic signals the transmission of which was affected by both local geological structure and low-frequency human-generated noise.
– The research suggests that elephants not only generate these distinct vibrations through their different activities, but can also perceive the difference from at least one kilometer away, suggesting they are using the vibration patterns to communicate.


Six new peeping frogs discovered in western Mexico by Mike Gaworecki [05/11/2018]

– Scientists have discovered six new species of peeping frog in the western Mexican states of Jalisco, Colima, and Michoacán.
– All six frogs belong to the genus Eleutherodactylus and were described in the journal Mesoamerican Herpetology last month. According to the authors of the article describing the new species, Eleutherodactylus frogs “are among the most diverse and taxonomically challenging groups of amphibians in the New World.”
– The genus Eleutherodactylus consists of five subgenera, four of which are native solely to the West Indies and are relatively well-studied. The six newly discovered frogs belong to the fifth subgenus, Syrrhophus, a group that has received less attention from scientists.


Scientists find ‘ground zero’ of deadly frog pandemic by Morgan Erickson-Davis [05/11/2018]

– First observed by scientists in the 1970s, the chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) had spread around the world by the early 2000s. The fungus kills frogs by colonizing their skin and impairing their ability to absorb water and electrolytes.
– By 2007, Bd infection had led to the decline or extinction of around 200 species of frogs, and today is considered one of the biggest single threats to amphibians worldwide.
– For a new study, researchers genetically analyzed hundreds of Bd samples; their results suggest that the fungus is from the Korean peninsula and began spreading between 50-120 years ago with the expansion of international trade.
– The researchers say the pet trade needs much stronger regulations if the spread of Bd – as well as the emerging salamander-killing fungus B. salamandrivorans – is to be stopped before it causes more devastation.


A boon for birds: Once overlooked, China’s mudflats gain protections by Benjamin Graham [05/11/2018]

– The shoreline of the Yellow Sea has been transformed dramatically over the last half-century as mudflats have been filled in with rock and soil, replacing dynamic, natural tidal zones with solid ground for ports, chemical plants and farmland.
– Losing the intertidal flats has proved devastating for the millions of shorebirds that funnel through the Yellow Sea during migration.
– In January, the Chinese government announced a sweeping package of reforms aimed at ending much of the land reclamation taking place on the mudflats.
– “Stunned joy” is how one bird conservationist described her reaction to news of the reforms, which she said could avert one of the biggest extinction crises facing migratory birds — if they work.


Latam Eco Review: Colombia’s last nomadic tribe faces extinction by Mongabay.com [05/11/2018]

Below are summaries of the most popular stories by our Spanish language service, Mongabay Latam, from the week of April 30 – May 6. Among the top articles: more than 20 families of the last nomadic indigenous peoples of Colombia face a serious food crisis. In other news, a new app allows fisherfolk and others […]

Tanzania’s Maasai losing ground to tourism in the name of conservation, investigation finds by John C. Cannon [05/11/2018]

– An investigation by the Oakland Institute, a policy think tank, has turned up allegations that the government of Tanzania is sidelining the country’s Maasai population in favor of tourism.
– The government and some foreign investors worry that the Maasai, semi-nomadic herders who have lived in the Rift Valley for centuries, are degrading parts of the Serengeti ecosystem.
– The authors of the Oakland Institute’s report argue that approaches aimed at conservation should focus on the participation and engagement of Maasai communities rather than their removal from lands to be set aside for high-end tourism.


In other news: Environmental stories from around the web, May 11, 2018 by Mongabay.com [05/11/2018]

– There are many important conservation and environmental stories Mongabay isn’t able to cover.
– Here’s a digest of some of the significant developments from the week.
– If you think we’ve missed something, feel free to add it in the comments.


New species of shrew discovered on a single mountaintop in the Philippines by Mongabay.com [05/11/2018]

– The newly described Palawanosorex muscorum, or the Palawan moss shrew, is known to live only near the peak of Mount Mantalingajan on Palawan Island in the southern Philippines.
– The shrew has a stout body and broad forefeet with long claws, which it uses to dig through humus on the forest floor to look for earthworms.
– The moss shrew has no close known relatives in Asia, and how it came to live on Mount Mantalingajan is a mystery, researchers say.


PREVIOUS FEATURES

Can India’s “People’s Forest” also serve as a haven for rhinos? by Bikash Kumar Bhattacharya [05/10/2018]

A forgotten people: traditional Amazon hamlet fights for its territory by Natalia Guerrero and Maurício Torres [05/09/2018]

Pangolins on the brink as Africa-China trafficking persists unabated by Sharon Guynup [05/08/2018]